We had the good fortune of connecting with James Carr and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi James, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
Funny enough, we didn’t really intend to start a business. Farmers Jam began because we discovered a ton of musical talent in the local food scene. We held a show and partnered with a local jam producer Lyn Deardoff, who sold her jam and donated proceeds to help us plant fruit trees on local farms. The following year, Lyn indicated she would be retiring and encouraged us to make our own jams. It wasn’t at all what we expected and it’s been a lot more challenging than we thought, but man it is so much fun to discover new flavors and put interesting fruits together. We love buying fruit from our farm partners, vending at local markets, and telling people about the circle of jam — from planting trees to harvesting fruit to making jam and back again, all with an awesome soundtrack. Everything came full circle in November, 2019 when we threw a surprise retirement party for Lyn. It was a beautiful moment.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Farmers Jam is a collective of farmers and friends who play music, make jam, and plant fruit trees. We use creative collaboration to make unforgettable jams.

There’s no doubt about it — our flavors, our commitment to health, and our story make us one of the most unique brands in Atlanta. Our jams are innovative, nuanced, and full of flavor. We typically use about half of the sugar of a typical jam to let the flavors of the fruit shine. Additionally, we use organic coconut palm sugar, which is low on the glycemic scale and won’t cause a spike or a crash in your system. You’ll also find spices in our jam like cardamom and ginger to really make your taste buds dance. Plus, where else are you going to find a serviceberry jam?
With all that said, our commitment to planting trees on local farms is what sets us apart. We partner with Plantlanta to recruit volunteers and support local farms by planting fruit trees. This way, we give back to the people who make our business possible, while absorbing carbon and creating a sustainable, long term source of healthy food. We call it the circle of jam, and we love it.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If you came to visit me in ATL, I’d focus on the history, the flavors, and the sounds. My wheelhouse is local restaurants, and for sure we’d visit Terry Koval at Deer and Dove — maybe spend a few minutes on the roof. We’d definitely check out East Atlanta Village — there’s so much going on there, including a farmers market and lots of fruit trees, but also great restaurants and music. We”d probably hit up Arabia Mountain and visit Robby. Particularly in September, the flowers and views are spectacular — and much less crowded than Stone Mountain (Bonus: no confederate monuments at Arabia, either!). If they’d never been to the Beltline, we’d most certainly walk or a bike on the East side trail so we could take a detour and see Dr. Martin Luther King’s house before swinging downtown and visiting the John Lewis mural. Ideally, you’d arrive in a week when the Farmers Jam Band was performing at Urban Sprout Farms, because that brings it all together.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
When it first became clear that Farmers Jam was going to become “a thing” I called some good friends and mentors together to help: Robby Astrove, local fruit expert and drummer; Lyn Deardoff, Master Preserver and founder of The Learning Kitchen; Tori Laconsay, an excellent designer with a passion for justice and local food; as well as Tenisio Seanima, a farmer at Nature’s Candy Farms, yoga instructor, and DJ. They continue to be huge influences and supporters of Farmers Jam, and we wouldn’t be here without their effort. I’d also like to shout out Chef Zu of King’s Apron, a farm to table plant-based Chef as well as an emcee, who designs our recipes, and Tabia Lisenbee-Parker, who makes us look fantastic on camera.

Website: www.thefarmersjam.com
Instagram: farmersjamatl
Twitter: farmersjamatl
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/farmersjamatl

Image Credits
Photos by: Tabia Lisenbee-Parker & James Carr

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